Marcel Praamstra is a senior coach and trainer who believes that real change starts with courage: the courage to be yourself, to challenge the status quo, and to lead with purpose. His personal motto, ‘Be maverick and dare to be different’, runs like a red thread through his work with leaders, teams, and organisations in transformation.
With over a decade of experience in agile transformation, leadership development, and coaching, Marcel supports organisations in building cultures of ownership, learning, and sustainable performance. He combines sharp observation with warmth and authenticity and is known for asking the questions others tend to avoid, always in service of growth. Marcel helps leaders and teams move beyond frameworks and processes, towards mindset, behaviour, and meaningful impact.
Marcel has worked extensively in complex enterprise environments, including ING, Rabobank, the Dutch Tax Authority, and Ahold Delhaize. He has guided large‑scale agile transformations, coached leadership teams at strategic and tactical levels, and supported the development of self‑organising, high‑performing teams. His approach is pragmatic and human‑centred: value‑driven ways of working, clear accountability, and space for innovation go hand in hand.
As a Gladwell Academy trainer, Marcel brings together agile thinking, leadership coaching, and deep personal development. He is certified in SAFe, Co‑Active Coaching, DISC, Emotional Intelligence (EQ‑i 2.0 & EQ 360), and Stakeholder Centered Coaching. Participants experience Marcel as warm, expressive, and direct — someone who creates psychological safety while challenging people to step out of their comfort zone and lead from purpose.
Marcel is fluent in Dutch and English and works with leaders, professionals, and teams who are ready to make change real — in themselves, their organisations, and the systems they operate in.